Dog Dayz of August

It’s the first Monday in August 2020...must be time for a garden update! 

First of all, allow me to state the obvious: it is hot. And humid. When I clocked my morning walk today at 7:30, it was already 72° and 94% humidity. The forecast has a chance of rain today, but I’m not holding my breath...been there, waited in vain for that. You can probably tell how hazy that picture is. Hot and hazy.

Anyway...

It’s a good time to take stock of how this year is going in our gardens. One thing is certain, spending copious amounts of time in one’s gardens is a great pandemic survival technique! So, I will count “daily gardening” as a plus for this year so far.

We gathered an amazing amount of blackberries from the four 2-year old plants that are located in what we call “the fence garden.” It’s an area along the backyard wooden fence that runs north to south, which we have tried to protect from the dogs by adding a parallel wire fence, allowing for about three feet by thirty feet of fruit and flowers. Next year we hope to add some blueberries to the mix. The blackberries have finished for the year, so we will be cutting off the canes to prep for new growth for next year’s berries.

The year-old Rose garden is better than we’d initially thought, owing to our fear of losing so many new plants to the drought last Summer through Fall...when the poor babies had little to no established root systems. We did lose a few, but we’ve added six more from an auction of Alba’s roses (she the former president of the Gwinnett Rose Society who passed away late last year and who asked that her roses be auctioned for funds for the GGRS). Every single one of them seems to be thriving! And although the garden itself is starting to look weedy because it has been entirely too hot to work in it lately, it continues to give us bountiful blooms for our dinner table display. 

Also in the plus column was the decision to sow so many flowers in and around the kitchen gardens. The zinnias, marigolds, and sunflowers have been attractive assets, both in color and in being pollinator magnets. From mid-morning to early evening, we enjoy the activity of a record number of bees, butterflies, and birds. And we pack the vases of roses with many more colorful blooms!

In thinking about the Kitchen gardens, I think if I had to pick a veg winner this year, it would have to be our beans. We have picked enough to eat and to freeze...and given several “messes” to neighbors. I staggered planting several varieties, starting as early as March, and I pick them on a near-daily basis in order to keep the vines productive. 

However, a remarkably cold and wet April delayed planting of almost everything else, meaning all crops are behind schedule as far as production is concerned. And then Mother Nature turned up the heat and turned off the taps in July, meaning more stress on the already-stressed tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, and corn. More stress=less...and smaller...produce. Sigh.

Still we continue to enjoy our little slice of Heaven on Earth here in Georgia...hot and humid as it may be. I am spending some time, researching plants to create a Dye Garden, hoping to make a match between two of my favorite activities: gardening and knitting. Speaking of knitting...here’s a picture of a recently-completed cotton shawl that was done for a Ravelry Mystery Knitalong (MKAL) called “Dog Dayz.” Timely, yes?

Anyway...again...

I’ve identified the area of the yard that will be converted from lawn to flowers, and I’ve started purchasing seeds to start the plants for Fall. I’ve also designated my old crockpot for a dye-pot, and I’m researching how to create dyes from the plants I grow as well as how to dye different yarn fibers. More on that at another time...

Between now and then, though, we came up with a rather unique way to both kill the grass in that area AND beat the heat of August: a play pool on any old rug! Missy M ordered it to be delivered here in time for her week-long staycation this week; Mr. T aired it up with the air compressor; and we filled it and hopped in yesterday! Ahhhh...

July is Jumping

The rains that were absent without leave for most of June finally made an appearance in the final days of the month. And now we are (1) reaping the benefits and (2) paying the price. Ah, gardening...a double-edged trowel, to say the least.

First, a comparative series of photos, showing the progression over 6 months:

Box Garden in January, 2015

Box garden in the first week of May, 2015

Box garden in the first week of June, 2015

Box garden in the first week of July, 2015

As you can tell, the beans have taken over the tutuer in the Center Square. And with Mother Nature's moisture, the plants have begun to flower and produce again. Yay, rain! Of course, the wet conditions are perfect for supporting a growing Mexican bean beetle population. Boo, rain. And since I have been benched recently due to problems with my left foot (read more in the latest blog post. Click here to go there.), I haven't been able to keep on top of the pests, both weeds and insects. What a challenge!

Still, Mr. T has been stepping in (no pun intended) to keep things going. And our tomatoes are really going, and going, and going...

As you can tell, we are getting tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, okra, cukes, and zukes, as well as beans. The yellow squash are beginning to give, and the Lima beans are starting to put on. And we are excited about two ripening crops, that we can almost taste:

Fingers crossed we get to eat our watermelons and corn this year...and not the raccoons, as in years past. We noticed that a coon had visited our suet feeders this weekend, so in spite of the dogs we still have the critters in residence.

And it looks like the tomatoes are beginning to show fungal problems (late blight?), so we will need to use the "suckers" we have potted up and well-rooted as pinch hitters. Need to get them in the ground this weekend, though, as we are coming on the last date for transplanting tomatoes in the Piedmont — July 15th.

The pumpkins I seeded just before my foot problems began have germinated and are beginning to vine, as are the Georgia Rattlesnake watermelons. Mr. T sprayed the vines with Sevin to try to keep the squash bugs and squash vine borers in check; he also sprayed the newly forming corn ears to combat corn worms. Although I prefer organic pest solutions, I had to concede that these take time and a dedicated gardener in residence...and that he is doing his best to fill in while I'm on the DL. "Needs must," as they say across the pond.

The report from the Berry Patch isn't quite as good. Although we had what appeared to be a record crop of blackberries, we are actually seeing very few. The blackbirds seem to know the Head Gardener is currently unavailable, and they are making the best of a bad situation. Or a good one...from their perspective, I suppose. 

The Rose Garden is holding its own these days, with the Japanese beetles scoring significant victories, especially among the tender new buds. But Mr. T sprayed the bushes with Sevin again on Saturday, so we should see some control through the end of their season. 

'Pat Austin' rose

And the daylilies are putting on a show, albeit with smaller and fewer blooms than in years past. Chalk another one up to lack of rain in their formative period. 

Harem House, blooming for the first time

New Jersey Spider

South Seas, a variety we brought from Missouri

Here Comes Santa Claus (gotta love that name!)

So, even though my participation has been curtailed for the time being, things are moving right along in the gardens. Yes, one might even say the joint is jumping. In July. 

One might....

April Showers

Today, we had a break in the rain...hooray! I sure hope the water table is making a comeback with all this moisture falling from the skies.

The 2015 Garden begins to give!

Here's the wrap up on the Way Back Gardens from April (look below for upcoming May activities...:):


Things have been rolling right along, with lots of progress in all the gardens.  I got a nice cool season garden planted in the raised beds of the Box Garden, and then eagerly tackled the warm-season planting checklist for the Kitchen Garden, following the average last frost date for our area (typically quoted as being April 15). Since the first two weeks of April have been warmer than usual, I took a chance on getting many of the tender transplants and seeds in the ground, although I am prepared to still have to make a mad dash to cover some tender tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants, along with the boxwood basil (in the photo, right) should the weather forecast turn chilly.

I'm happy to report that I got fifteen tomato transplants in Row #1 of the Row garden, along with ten pepper plants and two eggplants...in spite of all the help I received from Abbie and Winston (pictured, below). I planted three each of Park's Improved Whoppers, Juliets, Beefsteaks, and Celebrities; and one each of German Queen, Red Beefsteak, and Better Boy. I've also planted a Bush Goliath in a container on the deck. I remembered that when setting out tomato plants, to set up stakes and cages so as not to disturb the roots later. I also reused the landscape fabric I used last year, having already cut the X-shaped holes in the fabric at just the right distance for planting tomatoes and peppers.

I planted two each (sweet) green bell, yellow bell,  red bell, and purple bell peppers; and one each of Tabasco and Dragon (hot) peppers. I still have seedlings of Better Boys, Park's Improved Whoppers, Cherokee Purple, and Black from Tula, along with Orange Blaze, Mariachi, and Fish Peppers. These will all be ready to go into containers in a couple of weeks, about the same time I plant lima beans, sweet potatoes, okra, and cotton.

Although I missed the April 15th date ("pay your taxes, plant your corn"), I did get four rows of Silver Queen corn into the (muddy, sloppy) rows in the caged Block Garden. Fingers crossed the seeds germinate! I also got seeds planted for pole beans and bush beans in a couple of the raised beds in the Box Garden, joining two kinds of broccoli (pictured below), red cabbage, carrots, spinach, beets, several varieties of lettuce (pictured below), and (for the first time) potatoes. I had a few seed potatoes left over after I planted the grow bags, so I thought I'd trial them in a raised bed "just to see how that would work."

 

 

This year, Mr. T built me a raised bed to dedicate as an herb garden, next to the area dedicated to the asparagus raised bed. While I include herbs here and there all around the Way Back, I think they are pretty enough to be stars of their own show.

We have been enjoying our asparagus, harvesting a few stalks on nearly a daily basis, since just after Easter. I didn't get into the garden for a couple of days during the rains, and a few stalks grew too tall and tough. But, it's nice to be realizing the fruits of our labors several years ago.

First asparagus shoots 2015

Rounding out the report from the Kitchen Garden, I'm happy to see that the garlic (planted in the former home to the sweet potatoes and the onions (planted at the ends of all the raised beds in the Box Garden) are all growing and looking great.

The blueberries have already flowered and are fruiting up nicely in the Berry Patch. We also are seeing lots of strawberries, even though we probably should have been more diligent about weeding and mulching the bed; but honestly I don't remember seeing this number of potential fruit before. I pruned the grape vines and the blackberries rather lightly this Spring, and they are all greening up grandly.

I'm proud to report that all the trees in the Orchard flowered this year...no frost or freeze damage! Hooray. I need to spray the trees after the last of the apple trees finish flowering to ensure some protection against the summer onslaught of pests.

And we finally got the last of the roses we'd planned to move from the back yard to the Way Back planted in the Rose Garden: Mister Lincoln, JFK, and a Chrysler Imperial. We had to remove an Abraham Darby due to suspected RRD, making a total of four roses we have lost to this disease (of which there is no cure...only removal). We planted two more hybrid teas (Pink Peace and Chicago Peace...both from Home Depot) and a Duchesse de Brabant (from Antique Rose Emporium...in memory of our departed Duchess) in containers, and that should do it for planting for this year...except for the perennials and annuals for accents, of course. There is ALWAYS an "except for...," isn't there?

So, here's what's on our 'To Do' List for May*:

Kitchen Garden:

·         May 1^st is the beginning of the recommended planting time for bush lima beans (through July 1^st), okra (through May 31^st), and both sweet and hot peppers (through May 31^st ).  May 15^th marks the date to begin planting sweet potatoes (through June 15^th).  I've got a good start on this one.

·         Continue planting pole beans (through July 1^st), cantaloupe/muskmelons (through June 1^st), sweet corn (through June 1^st), cucumbers (through May 15^th), pumpkins (through June 15^th), summer and winter squash (through May 15^th), tomato plants (through July 15^th), and watermelons (through June 1^st). I currently have transplants-from-seeds almost ready to go in my Bio Dome seed starter in the kitchen.

·         Be sure to remove any suckers on tomatoes to encourage the plant’s energy be used for larger fruit rather than side shoots. (I always attempt to root the suckers; many times I'm lucky and get a freebie tomato!). And, take the precaution I learned while in the Seeds of Change at EPCOT: remove the lower branches on tomato plants to help prevent diseases such as blights that are transferred from water splattering off soil onto leaves.

·         When planting beans (pole and/or bush) and corn, make successive plantings every two weeks to ensure a longer harvest.

·         Plant basil and dill directly in the garden this month.

Orchard and Berry Patch:

·         Fertilize blueberries, blackberries, and grapes this month.  Read more about it in the NC Cooperative Extension publication Grapes and Berries for the Garden.

Rose Garden (and perennials and annuals):

·         To prevent black spot on roses, continue a weekly fungicidal spray regimen, if you don't use the 6-week systemic variety.   The latest research says NOT to remove black spot infected leaves UNTIL you don't see anymore green...thereby giving your rose bush all the help it needs in continuing to produce chlorophyll.

·         Prepare beds for summer annuals such as petunias, marigolds, and zinnias; a location with 6 or more hours of sun each day is ideal.

 

Flowers, Shrubs, and Trees in the Front and Backyard gardens:

Azaleas blooming in the back yard

 

·         May is time to plant summer-flowering bulbs, especially caladiums and gladioli. I already have some glads coming up inside a "protected" area, so they seem to have made it through the mild winter we had.



·         Prune and fertilize Spring-flowering shrubs such as azalea (pictured, left) and rhododendron after they have bloomed. We NEED to make this a hard-prune year, as ours are all rather wild looking.

 

·         Remove broadleaf weeds from all landscape planting areas. If left to grow, they will rob water and nutrients from your plants. We have brought nearly 200 bags of hardwood mulch onto our property, spreading yards and yards by cubic yards of the stuff.  We still have lots to spread in the Rose Garden.

Lawns and Grasses

·         According to the Home Lawn Calendar for May from the Center for Turfgrass Environmental Research and Education at NC State, mow tall fescue lawns at 3 to 3 ½”, and at least once each week.  This article also encourages grasscycling, which is the practice of leaving grass clippings on the lawn.  “Grass clippings decompose quickly and can provide up to 25 percent of the lawn's fertilizer needs.”  We actually use the clippings from the Way Back (around the Orchard and the Berry Patch) to "feed" the compost piles.  Good as gold!

·         Lawns need 1 to 1 ¼ inches of water per week.

Other             

• Take some time to enjoy the butterflies, honeybees, and hummingbirds!  We have a small raised bed Pollinator Garden in the Orchard, with a bird bath; I see that the bee balm, lavender, and pineapple lilies are returning this year...yeah! Soon, I will direct-seed zinnias to fill out the spaces.
• Move houseplants out-of-doors when the nighttime temperatures are consistently above 50 degrees. We are waiting to move the lemon trees out of the plasticized screen porch...just for their protection, since we are still getting some 45-49 degree nights.
• Be sure to incorporate finished compost into the garden,  and then begin a new compost pile. We have a wonderful barrel-type composter that Mr. T rolled out to the Row that will host the sweet potatoes and okra, so we are ready to begin the process again. Learn everything you ever wanted to know about the subject from the NC Cooperative Extension publication:  Composting: A Guide to Managing Organic Yard Wastes.

Remember, May is Melanoma/Skin Cancer Detection and Awareness Month.  Before you dash outside to your May gardening activities, put on a hat, sunglasses, and adequate sunscreen protection. It's also a good time to visit your dermatologist for a skin check. I'm getting a jump on that this Friday!

Happy hoeing!


==================================
* This May To Do List is updated and revised from an article I had published on GoGreenTriad.com in 2011.

To Do in the Zone 7 Garden in June

It's the last month of Spring...how is your garden growing? Here's a photo I took after this morning's coffee walk...peas and carrots...and one ginormous onion! The "English" peas are winding down, the carrots are finally ready, and the onions just might take over our world...wow!

By now in Zone 7, you should be well into your planting of warm season vegetables: tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash, melons, cucumbers, okra, and Southern peas are all in the ground here in The Way Back Kitchen Garden. I chose to forgo eggplants this year since we are neither big fans.

And, like us, you are probably pulling up many of the cool season crops as they begin to bolt and go to seed. I made a contribution to the compost bin this weekend as I replaced the broccoli, cabbage, spinach, and bolting lettuce plants (all in the raised beds in the Box Garden) with plantings of a variety of bush beans and some Salad Bowl lettuce that is supposed to withstand the coming Summer heat "better." I'm giving it a good chance by planting it against the west-side boards on the raised beds (which will provide shade from the harsh setting sun) and under the cucumber trellis frame, over in the Row Garden...again for added protection.

I also decided to devote one box (L-shaped, with the equivalent of 3 3x3 squares...or 27 square feet, if you do the math) to a tomato trial. Last year, you may recall I put three Sun Gold tomato suckers I'd rooted in this box...one in each 3x3 square. And they thrived, to put it mildly. 

When our first frost threatened last Fall, I harvested all the remaining tomatoes, green and gold ones, and turned them into Green Tomato Relish (great on hot dogs...and black-eyed peas, by the way!). But I didn't pull the plants. Well, they survived that first frost. We had another warm spell, as we often do...and the plants flowered again...and more Sun Golds arrived. But many of these fell into the box when I did finally pull the plants. I tried to remove as many as I could, but apparently missed as many as I got. 

I didn't plant this box with cool season veggies, as I was going to let it rest. Nature had other plans! Before I knew it, I had worlds of tiny Sun Gold tomato plants. Good grief! Knowing that SG is a hybrid tomato, I "knew" that I couldn't count on any of these reseeded babies to produce fruit like the 3 parent SG plants. But, what would the fruit look like? And would there be any fruit at all? Sounds like an experiment to me!

I pulled all except three "baby" plants...the ones that had seeded themselves in the center of their respective squares, more or less. I wanted to see what I will get from the seedlings of hybrid plants. Well, one question is answered: will they fruit? Yes! The three remaining (and many of the ones I removed) have all flowered and are developing tomatoes...and they look just like the tiny bunches of Sun Golds that the parent plants produced last year. I'll report back on how the reseeded plants' fruit tastes soon. Very soon!

Additionally, I seeded my garden borders with marigolds and zinnias, using the seed-heads we save every year after frost kills off our favorite annuals. The seeds we harvested last Fall are descendants of flowers we had around our garden in O'Fallon, MO...over 5 years ago. The originals were hybrids, so the first generation of plants from the saved seeds weren't "true," but subsequent flowers are pretty reliable. And the whole point is to get lots of flowers to attract pollinators...without spending a fortune. Check!

Speaking of pollinators...

Mr. T cleaned and cultivated the Pollinator Garden, which starts its second full year in the Orchard. The pineapple lilies we purchased at the Daylily farm in Garner last year have all survived this past Winter (how, I will never know!) and are sending up reddish-purple leaves. I set out tiny transplants of zinnias and marigolds (started from purchased seeds), plus some Root-tone-dipped cuttings of the Moonlight mums and Shasta daisies, which are thriving elsewhere on our property. I also planted a few sunflower seeds, but I think the crows were observing me from their high perch on the transmission line tower...and will probably make a meal out of my efforts before I can say "shoo!"

So what else is on this month's checklist? Here goes:

Checklist for Zone 7 Gardens:

• Mulch container gardens to help retain moisture in the coming hot weather, using a top-dressing of compost
• Remove Spring annuals as the weather heats up
• Set out seedlings of warm-weather annuals; direct-sow seeds of annuals like nasturtiums. 
• Prune and fertilize spring-blooming vines such as clematis and wisteria after they bloom
• Fertilize and prune spring-blooming shrubs such as azaleas and rhododendrons after they bloom
• As vegetable plants start to flower, begin regular feeding with diluted fish emulsion
• To direct growth of new canes, pinch tips off of blackberries and young grapevines
• Keep blueberry bushes well-weeded and well-watered as their fruit ripens; wait until after the harvest to prune and fertilize
• Weed strawberry beds and add a mulch of compost topped with a layer of straw
• Prune indeterminate tomatoes by removing suckers and topping off the main vine as it reaches the height of its cage and/or stake; try rooting a couple of the hardy suckers to have more plants.
• Sow seeds of heat-loving vegetables (squash, pumpkins, melons) directly into the ground
• Continue to feed roses monthly and treat with a 3-in-1 systemic per label instructions; deadhead as they finish their first round of blooming
• Prune once-blooming roses after they've flowered this month
• Check the undersides of leaves of warm season veggie plants like squash, tomatoes, cukes, and melons for the eggs of pests such as the potato beetle, squash bugs, etc. Squish ALL eggs...or if that doesn't sound like fun, remove the egg-infested leaf and put it in a container (I use a 3-lb coffee canister) half-filled with soapy water; ditto with any adult pests you see. Don't just leave the eggs! The goal is to keep the next generation of pests from hatching. The more pests, the less produce. Simple math.

June is a busy month in the Way Back gardens, as we transition from one season to another. Happy hoeing!

Here's What Spring Brings

March is always a busy month in our Zone 7 garden...with far more items on the To Do List than decent days to do the To Do's! With our wacky, wintry weather still hanging around (we had snow flurries on Tuesday of this week!), we have had to cram a lot into shorter blocks of time.

What we have done so far in March:

►Celebrating St. Patrick's Day is a good reminder that it's time to plant potatoes. We have used grow bags successfully for several years now (remember? I have posted about them before here...:-), and this year is no different. I've planted 10 bags so far (2 more to go) with Kennebec, Yukon Gold, Midnight Moon, and Russet. I have seen tiny green shoots in the very first bag of Russets I planted, so that means they survived some pretty chilly temps. 

►Planted 6 new bareroot roses in the Rose Garden: 3 Midas Touch (AARS), and 1 each Sweetness, Lagerfeld, and Wild Blue Yonder (AARS winner...& dedicated to my Daddy, who often sang the Army Air Corps (now Air Force) song: "Off we go into the wild, blue yonder, flying high into the sun..."). Also we (and by "we," I mean Mr. T...;-) transplanted the two Cinnamon Girl miniature roses that survived the winter from their containers to the Rose Garden, replacing the two First Prizes (AARS) that did not survive the polar vortex. Sun Sprinkles, the 3 AARS-winning miniatures also in containers, seemed to have fared a bit better, so I just pruned them lightly.

►Noticed that 10 of the "cuttings" I kept when I pruned the roses in February are showing some new growth and promise of tiny root hairs. Got them in pots and covered with plastic. We'll see if I get any new roses this year...fingers crossed!

Compost Happens!

►Added the contents of the compost barrel to the Row Garden (as you see in the photo left), along with shredded leaves, pulverized (powdered...so it will break down faster) lime, and 10-10-10 fertilizer. Then turned the rows and hilled them back up. After a couple of weeks, I'll cover them with landscape fabric like I did last year. Interestingly enough, I heard an Ag agent from another county speak last week, and he advised against covering the soil in this manner. Hmmmmm. Since we had such fantastic results with our trial last year, I think I will have to go against his advise and rely on my experience. I happen to like not having to weed...& and there is no denying our soil looks great!

►Applied 10-10-10 fertilizer to blueberries, blackberries, and grapes in the Berry Patch. All were beginning to break dormancy, although I have concerns about what this later-than-usual cold snap might have done to all those buds, as well as the early-to-break-dormancy-and-leaf-out plum tree in the orchard.

 

►Planted cool season transplants in the raised beds in the Box Garden. As I watched the calendar march through March, I knew that I wouldn't have time to rely on seeding these veggies for a good harvest this year. So I put in 4 kinds of lettuce transplants (red and green Romaine, Buttercrunch, and Red Sails), and then seeded for Black-seeded Simpson and more Buttercrunch; 2 kinds of broccoli transplants, along with red cabbage and spinach transplants. Then, as soon as I planted the boxes and let Mother Nature shower them overnight, I put row covers on to protect the tender transplants. Box Garden looks like it has been eaten by giant caterpillars again. Sigh.

►I also seeded some Danver's half-long carrots to one box. Then, I finally, finally got my peas planted on the fence in the Block Garden...just before this latest dip into the 20's. I haven't checked to the damage yet. Fingers crossed. Again.

►To repair some bare spots in our lawns, we overseeded with grass seed and slow release fertilizer. I got out our soil test for the front yard and realized that we didn't add the second application of phosphorus last year (our soil was so low in phosphorus that we couldn't add enough in one season, so we had to break the application into two parts). We'll put that chore on this weekend's list, as rain is predicted...and a good watering-in by Mother Nature will be perfect.

►Transplanted and divided some pots of liriope that our neighbor had given us last year. Also gave the existing stands of "monkey grass" their haircuts, shearing the old brown fronds before the plants begin to turn green.

Bio-Dome Seed Starter -
New Tomato Seedlings growing to the light

►Started seeds of tomatoes and peppers in my new Bio-Dome seed-starter, as you see in the picture above. I had it on top of the kitchen fridge to provide bottom-warmth for germination, but have now moved it to the counter under the warm, intense undercounter lights. 

I have 4 Roma VF, 4 Park's Whoppers, 4 Beefmasters, and 2 Cherokee Purples (new to my garden this year)...and they have all germinated! That is truly remarkable because those Romas? Well, those seeds are 5 years old! I've started some every year since I purchased the packet in 2010, keeping the remainder in the garage fridge.

I cannot tell you how happy it makes me to see tiny seeds actually come to life...almost before my very eyes. I have some transplants on order...and I will get a couple of transplants at the garden center, as I always do...but growing from seed still thrills this gardener's soul!

And the peppers? The peppers are slower to germinate than the tomatoes, but I did notice a couple of teeny, tiny stems this morning. Soon, I hope to have California Wonder, Jalapeño, Fish, Mariachi, Cherry Poppers, and Orange Blaze...those last three brand new to my garden this year. 

OK, let me get a hot cup of coffee, put on my jacket, and go see what the garden looks like today. Can't wait!

Happy hoeing!

Tomatoes for Later

Not all 'gardening' takes place outdoors, as you know. As this busy Monday comes to an end, I'm enjoying one of those indoor gardening-related activities: making salsa from the bounty harvested over the weekend. Salsa...such a fabulous way to enjoy the fruits of our labors after we have said goodbye to the season.

Actually, I've divided this activity into two parts...over two days: prepping the veggies on Day One, and cooking and canning the salsa on Day Two. I find that it is easier on my back that way. 

I'm following a recipe for Fresh Vegetable Salsa from the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving, edited by Judi Kingry and Lauren Devine (©2006 Robert Rose, Inc., p. 203). Only making one tiny change...leaving out the cilantro, since I can't stand the taste. Hate. It. Know that I will be happier with the final product if I make it my way. Am using finely chopped celery leaves as a substitute. 

Day One:

First, I gathered all the ingredients together: tomatoes (I'm using mainly Roma and Juliets, with some globe or slicing varieties like Jet Star, Big Daddy, Brandywine, and Mortgage Lifter to get me to the 7 cups called for in the recipe), onions, bell peppers, jalapeño peppers, and garlic...all grown in our Kitchen Garden this year. There is a lot of prep work in making salsa...a LOT of peeling, coring, slicing, dicing, seeding, and chopping...and I take whatever shortcuts I can to help.

One of these step-savers is using the power of boiling water to help peel all those tomatoes. Drop clean whole, unpeeled tomatoes in a pot of boiling water for a minute or two (depending on the size), and when the skins start to split, scoop them into a large bowl of iced water (shown below). Voilá! The peelings slip right off! A sharp knife makes quick work of any core.

After chopping all the ingredients, I stirred everything together into the stainless steel pot that I'll be cooking the salsa in...and let it rest in the fridge until Day Two.

Day Two:

I waited until the house had cooled down for the evening to start the cooking and processing...which steams up the kitchen...and the cook...pretty well. First, I cooked the salsa for 30 minutes...tasted it...added a bit of brown sugar to temper the strong vinegar taste...then cooked it for about 30 more minutes. I like a thick salsa rather than a thin one.

I then got my big spaghetti pot out and filled it full of water. This serves as my canner...and with the strainer insert...works very well. Twenty minutes in a boiling water bath and here are the results: 8 half-pints of what I'm calling Mildly-Wild Salsa. 

I used the 8 jalapeños called for in the recipe, but I decided to live a little dangerously by including the seeds of 4 of them...and the seeds and membranes are where the heat hides in hot peppers. And I followed the excellent suggestion in the Ball book on how to handle chopping the peppers: use latex gloves.

We'll be enjoying these tomatoes long past the end of the season. 

Tomato Time in Tennessee

I know, I know...we (and our tomatoes) don't actually live in Tennessee*. I'm a fan of alliteration, and "Tomato Time in North Carolina" just doesn't have the same ring, now does it? Regardless. The tomatoes are coming in!

The picture above shows three German Johnsons, a potato-leafed, beefsteak, open-pollinated (OP) variety, often referred to as an Heirloom. Known for producing large "slicing"-type fruit, German Johnson was first created in this part of the country and does well in the humidity of the Piedmont. While it has no hybridized resistance to the diseases that plague tomatoes, I still take a chance on German Johnson every year because it is so readily available around here at planting time. Bonnie Plants says the following about them:

• Fruit size: 12 to 24 oz, averaging 1 pound
• Matures: 76 days
• Plant Size: 4 to 6 feet
• Plant Type: Indeterminate

"For quality that has stood the test of time, the heirloom called German Johnson stands tall—literally. These big, pink-red tomatoes are borne on robust plants that can fill a tomato cage and drape back down again. Give them at least 3 feet between plants and then pick the flavorful sandwich-sized slicers as they ripen. The number of tomatoes may be less than other varieties, but the ones you bring to the table will be worthy of their space in the garden. In our Alabama test garden, where conditions are ideal and the season is long, we harvested an average of 40 fruits per plant. We recommend both hybrid and heirloom tomatoes for your garden because hybrids are generally more productive and disease resistant. German Johnson calls North Carolina home, so it is suited to life in humidity and is fairly disease resistant for an heirloom. This one is a favorite at farmers' markets in the Carolinas in the summer when the local crops come in."

They are right on the money about the fruit sizes. The tomato on the scale in the picture above weighed in at 15 ounces, while the one on the right was a light-weight at 12 ounces. The one on the left was so large, I had to cut it and weigh it in three sections...totaling 22 ounces! Of course, one of the issues with these big ol' beefsteaks is how much meat you lose to the dimpling, ribbing, and irregular growth patterns, as you can see on shoulders of the tomato on the left...which yielded about 12 ounces of usable fruit. You can see below a shot of the center portion...the rich, ripe, juicy center portion. One slice per sandwich...and get your napkins ready, folks!

I am also harvesting a mountain of Sun Golds, a super-sweet, orange-colored, cherry-type tomato that is new to my garden this year. Can't eat them all...can't give them away fast enough! My other cherry or salad varieties (Lemon Boy and Juliet) have worlds of green tomatoes on the 3 plants of each type that I started from seed. Probably another week or two before they start to ripen. Better dust off my Pasta Salad recipe, eh?

Another new one for my garden is Big Daddy, a hybrid from Burpee. They are starting to ripen...and they are beautiful and delicious. Plus, they are holding up nicely against the blight that is taking out the German Johnsons. Here's what Burpee has to say about Big Daddy (which had me at the name, don't you know?!):

Big Daddy Tomato, Hybrid

Bred from the all-time great Big Boy with improved disease resistance.

Burpee Exclusive

Hear ye! Hear ye! Revolution in the tomato patch! An all-around game-changer, Big Daddy's a breakthrough for taste, size, disease-resistance and yield. Bred from the all-time great Big Boy, Big Daddy produces a mighty, delicious harvest of ruby red round meaty fruits, 15 whopping ounces apiece over a long harvest season. Fusarium and verticillium resistant. Indeterminate.

Fruit Weight: 15  ounces

Days to Maturity: 78  days

Height: 60  inches

Speaking of "resistance," I have been fairly diligent about trimming up the bottom stems and leaves on all varieties, since our visit last year to EPCOT's behind-the-scenes garden tour, where we learned how that practice can help keep diseases and pests at bay. I have also used neem oil (biological pesticide and fungicide control), insecticide soap (mites, etc.), and spinosad in the form of Captain Jack's Dead Bug Brew (to control  tomato worms and caterpillars). (Yes, I do try to grow organically...or at least as earth- and people-friendly as possible.) Next on the docket is Serenade, another organic pest controller, which (unlike neem oil) can be used in higher temperatures with no foliage damage and at any time of the day as it isn't supposed to be harmful to bees, therefore you aren't limited to early morning or late evening for treatment times. 

Worst problems this year in the tomato crop? So far, it's been squirrel damage (see below). The rascals take one bite out of an almost-ready-to-pick ripe tomato...and usually leave it hanging on the plant for me to find, like you see. Grrrrrrrrrrrr. Way beyond irritating. It means I have to be diligent in harvesting just before they are ripe...and most attractive to the critters. It also means I can rarely just take a notion to eat a vine-ripened tomato from the garden...I have to wait until they finish up on my kitchen counter. Sigh.

After that...it has to be blight, both early and late, occurring almost simultaneously in this record-setting wet year. At this point, it's a waiting game. Waiting to see if any of the control measures will stave off the diseases 'til after harvest. 

OK...back to the tomato round up. Still waiting in the wings, putting on green fruit but none ready to eat yet, are the three grafted heirlooms (Brandywine Pink, Brandywine Red, and Mortgage Lifter), as well as the other two varieties I seeded (Jet Star and Roma). The grafted heirlooms, which are considered long season beefsteaks, are showing signs of blight damage on the leaves, but the other two have quite healthy-looking plants. I have found blossom-end rot on only two varieties this year: Brandywine Red and Roma. Not on the all the fruit on either, mind you...just on random stems. Odd, isn't it?

While I ponder the cause and solution (for next year's crop), I do believe I've made myself hungry. I sliced up an Early Girl, which was right here in a container on the deck (ripe and ready...no squirrel damage!) and picked some of the last of my Red Sails lettuce (at least until the Fall garden). Fresh bread...you know the kind that sticks to the roof of your mouth. Add mayo, salt, and freshly ground pepper. Did I forget anything?

Oh yeah! Got bacon?!

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*Tennessee tomatoes — Actually, it is Tomato Time in Tennessee...Ripley, Tennessee, that is. "Ripley tomatoes" are known throughout the state for their flavor, etc. No, that's not a variety of tomato...that's where they are from: grown in the rich Mississippi River soil in and around Ripley, Tennessee. They have just celebrated the 30th Tomato Festival in Lauderdale County.